Headlines
India stands to gain from historic Iran deal
By
Arun KumarWashington, July 14
India, which has
drastically reduced its oil imports from Iran under US pressure, stands
to gain from the historic accord reached between Tehran and six world
powers to limit its nuclear programme in return for lifting sanctions.
But
before India, which imports 70 percent of its oil supply, turns back on
the taps of Iranian oil, President Barack Obama has to sell the deal to
a hostile Republican Congress that has 60 days to review it.
Obama
has vowed to veto any legislation that may scuttle what he described as
"a comprehensive, long-term deal that will verifiably prevent Iran
from obtaining a nuclear weapon".
Asserting that "it would be
irresponsible to walk away from this deal", Obama said he would "welcome
a robust debate in Congress on the details of this deal" even as he
warned that "I will veto any legislation that prevents the successful
implementation of this deal."
"Because of this deal, Iran will
not be able to produce highly enriched uranium or weapons-grade
plutonium, the raw materials necessary to build a bomb," Obama said in
an open letter to the American public explaining "what this deal means
and how it works".
Under this deal, Iran will reduce its
stockpile of enriched uranium by 98 percent, remove two-thirds of its
installed centrifuges -- the machines necessary to produce highly
enriched uranium -- and store them under constant international
supervision, he said.
"Under this deal, Iran will modify its
nuclear reactor in Arak so it cannot produce weapons-grade plutonium --
and all spent fuel from the reactor will be shipped out of the country
indefinitely," Obama said.
Asserting that "This deal is not built
on trust -- it's built on verification", he said international nuclear
inspectors will have access to Iran's nuclear programme -- "where
necessary, when necessary".
"As Iran implements this deal, it
will receive gradual relief from sanctions. If it violates any aspect of
this deal, sanctions that have crippled Iran's economy will snap back
into place," he said.
According to the White House, the sanctions
would begin lifting once the UN Security Council endorses the Joint
Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) as the agreement is called,
"simultaneously with the IAEA-verified implementation of agreed
nuclear-related measures by Iran".
So it's still some more time
before Iranian oil starts flowing freely again to India, which has
reduced its oil imports from Tehran to 10-11 million tonnes in 2014-15
from 21.20 million tonnes in 2009-10.
(Arun Kumar can be contacted at [email protected])